Microsoft is engaged in smart public relations with this announcement. Donating a billion dollars in cloud services is a major step for the company and the thousands of not-for-profit organizations and academic institutions which will use it. Make no mistake. Microsoft isn’t doing this solely out of a philanthropic impulse. It is trying to gain market share for its software and this is a way to do it — by reaching a market that hitherto couldn’t afford it. Once these organizations understand what the cloud can do for them, they will make it part of their operating budgets. What could be better than that? Microsoft gains kudos for its gift in the beginning and wins in the end.
Marston Strategic Communications
Communicators Who Get Results